Rescue on the Murray

Volume 11, No. 57, November 30, 2006
By Cpl Mike McSweeney

High and dry: Privates Leroy Henderson and Jayson Schmidt by the river where they saved a man from drowning. Photo by Kylie Goldsmith The Border Mail.

A NSW teenager owes his life to the efforts of three soldiers after a swimming accident in Albury on November 11.

The teenager swung from a rope into the Murray River before surfacing face down and motionless.

ALTC Basic Medical Assistant trainees Privates Lee Henderson and Jayson Schmidt, who were relaxing at the popular recreation spot, first thought the boy was skylarking with his friends.

“We’ve left it for a few seconds and then asked his mates if he’s alright and they’ve said “yeah”, Pte Henderson said.

But as the teenager was swept away by the current the two trainees realised it was not a joke.

They ran to the aid of the teenager, who by that stage was caught on a semi-submerged log.

“Schmidt dived in first and pulled up his head,” Pte Henderson said.

“[The teenager] looked up and gasped for air. He was just hysterical.”

Conscious, the teenager was in pain but could not move his limbs.

Pte Schmidt and Henderson suspected a spinal injury and knew not to move him. Instead, they supported the casualty in the water while bystanders raised the alarm.

“If we didn’t have the training we probably would have just grabbed him and dragged him into shore, and would have done more damage,” Pte Schmidt said.

Another student from ALTC arrived at the scene and offered assistance. Although Pte Chris Fraser was on the Operator Supply course, he had spent ten years working as a lifeguard in NSW.

An ambulance arrived on the scene but called Albury Wodonga Border Rescue as the teenager was several metres from shore.

By the time rescuers arrived with a suitable boat, privates Henderson and Schmidt had been supporting the casualty for almost an hour.

A veteran of many rescues, Pte Fraser secured the casualty in the stretcher before coordinating the loading of the stretcher into the boat.

The teenager was taken to a local hospital but moved to Melbourne the next day. Although he was fortunate to have had two medics and a former lifeguard come to his aid, Pte Fraser said that he just considered it
to be his job.

“He doesn’t owe me anything. I just did what I’m trained to do,” he said.

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